Today at Commission, pet passports and Brexit

Barely 24 hours after the U.K.’s EU ambassador delivered its official exit letter, some reporters at the Commission’s midday press briefing were still looking for clarification on the process. Theresa May is still saying she would like to discuss trade sooner rather than later in the negotiations but the noises from the EU27 said are that other issues are their first priority. Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s Brexit coordinator, has suggested a three-year transitional period would be needed after the Article 50 clocks stops ticking in March 2019.

Alexander Winterstein, the Commission’s deputy spokesman, steered clear of specifics, saying it was up to the EU27 leaders on April 29 to decide how they would approach Brexit talks.

He was more outspoken though on how Brexit will affect the free movement of pets around the bloc. Around 250,000 dogs and cats cross the English Channel every year and the issue was raised on Wednesday at a “citizens’ dialogue” in Malta with Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and the Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. Juncker is there for a meeting of the European People’s Party.

Asked where pet passports would feature in the EU’s priorities for the talks, Winterstein replied: “Obviously, the fate of dogs and cats, their free movement and other aspects are of the utmost importance. Not only for the European Commission but for the European Union in general … and I would say even globally.”